syrian crisis

By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS, Nov 17 – The U.N. Security Council was set to approve on Thursday a one-year extension of an international inquiry charged with laying blame for chemical weapons attacks in Syria, diplomats said, paving the way for a showdown over how to punish those responsible. Russia has said it wants the

MOSCOW, June 19 – Russia said on Sunday it had reached an agreement with the United States on the need to improve coordination between their military operations in Syria, where they are backing opposing sides of a civil war and launching air strikes. Moscow’s intervention on the side of President Bashar al-Assad, alongside Western backing

BEIRUT, June 8 – Daesh fighters withdrew from frontlines with Syrian rebel forces north of Aleppo on Wednesday as they mounted a counter attack against the jihadist group near the Turkish border, an opposition source and monitoring group said. The sudden withdrawal from villages around the rebel-held town of Marea points to the pressure Daesh is feeling

GENEVA, June 6 – A U.S.-backed offensive to retake the Daesh-held northern Syrian city of Manbij has displaced some 20,000 civilians and could uproot about 216,000 more if it continues, a U.N. humanitarian agency said on Monday. Syrian fighters have surrounded Manbij from three sides as they press the onslaught against the jihadists near the

By Sebastien Malo AKRE, Iraq, June 6 – As Mohammed Said Amin witnessed the intensifying battle between government forces and rebel groups for control of his hometown of Damascus, he and his wife made a plan to escape. They left for Ras al-Ayn, a Syrian town bordering Turkey. But when it came under attack from

BEIRUT, May 6 – Rebels seized a village from government forces near Aleppo overnight, a monitoring group and rebel sources said on Friday, gaining important ground near the Syrian city where the United States and Russia are trying to de-escalate the war. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 73 people had been killed in

AMMAN, April 5 – Islamist rebels shot down a warplane on Tuesday in an area south of the city of Aleppo where insurgents are battling the Syrian army and allied militias, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The monitor said a plume of smoke was seen as the plane caught fire before it fell

MOSCOW, March 28 – The presidents of Russia and Iran agreed on Monday to step up bilateral contacts, including over the Syrian conflict, in which both countries are allies of President Bashar al-Assad. The Syrian government and Western-backed opposition are currently holding U.N.-mediated peace talks as part of a diplomatic push launched with U.S.-Russian support

By Tom Körkemeier and Alastair Macdonald BRUSSELS, March 10 – European Union interior ministers expressed reservations on Thursday over easing visa requirements for Turkey, a key element of a tentative deal with Ankara that Brussels and Germany hope will halt the mass influx of refugees and migrants to Europe. EU and Turkish leaders agreed in

UNITED NATIONS, March 9 – Instead of fleeing aerial bombings throughout winter, besieged Syrian children ran towards devastated buildings to search for broken furniture that could fuel fires for warmth and cooking, said a Syrian aid worker as the country marks five years of war. The aid worker – who spoke on condition of anonymity